Gynecomastia surgery is a relatively painless and quick procedure, and the downtime is minimal compared to other operations of its kind.

If you are gearing up for surgery, you probably have plenty of questions. The following should provide the answers, allowing you to have a quick, safe and successful recovery from this life-changing operation.

What Does the Surgery Involve?

Gynecomastia surgery is an outpatient procedure. That means that you will be in an out of the facility the same day.

In most cases, the male breast reduction surgery requires a general anesthetic and involves liposuction of the breast area combined with removal of excess breast tissue. The entire procedure takes about an hour to complete.

How Long Should You Ask Off from Work?

Most patients want to know how long they will be away from the job. You should probably ask your boss for about a 5 to 7-day leave.

Obviously, if you work at a job that has you lifting heavy materials, such as construction, you may want to ask for more time off.

If you work a desk job, you could be back to work within a couple of days.

The Recovery Process

You should allow about 4-6 weeks for your body to heal from male breast reduction surgery. The length of time required before you are back to normal will depend on the severity of your condition and your body’s ability to heal quickly.

Here is a general rundown of the recovery process.

The first three days are crucial. This is the time when you should be doing the most resting.

To ensure that you don’t hinder the healing process, it’s best to walk around the house and engage in deep breathing exercises for the first 72 hours.

During this time, you may feel a slight amount of pain and tightness in your chest area. Your surgeon will likely provide, or recommend that you take, pain medication, which should be tapered off within a week’s time.

After 7 to 10 days, you will have a follow-up visit with your plastic surgeon to ensure that you are healing properly.

How to Assist the Healing Process

There are some things you can do at home to make sure you recover fully. First, make sure that you are drinking plenty of water.

You should also try to stay away from high-sodium foods.

Your surgeon will probably make you wear a chest compression pad that will be worn for a couple of weeks following surgery.

This garment is critical to the healing process and should not be removed for any reason. Doing so could set your recovery back and keep you from experiencing the excellent results you expect.

The purpose of the compression pad is to help reduce any swelling that may occur and to help the skin adjust to your chest’s new contours.

When Can You Become Active Again?

After the initial recovery period, you should be able to return to normal activities after just a few days.

This doesn’t mean that you can start hitting the gym.

Aerobic activity and heavy lifting should be limited for at least four weeks.

Some patients find that they cannot return to their regular weight lifting activities until about a month or more following surgery. Again, this depends on your body’s natural healing ability.

When Can You Work Out Heavily Again?

If you’re anxious to get back to the gym, after 14 days, you can begin testing the waters to see if you are fully healed.

To begin, start off with some walking or light jogging.

After a month’s time, you can increase the intensity of your workouts, but you should still refrain from doing heavy lifting with your chest or shoulder muscles.

In two months’ time, you could very well be back to your regular gym routine.

Go easy on the bench press and military press, and all other chest and shoulder workouts, until you’re absolutely sure that there is no soreness or pulling in those areas.

Your Doctor’s Post-Op Plan

Your doctor will not perform surgery on you and then send you on your way to fend for yourself.

Instead, you will receive a post-operation plan that will include what you should do to enhance your recovery, including when you should rest, what you should eat, and how you should work out.

Be sure that you ask your doctor if you have any questions or if you plan to engage in any activities that you are unsure of.

If you want the best from your male breast reduction surgery, it is important that you follow your doctor’s orders, and rest aplenty.

In no time, you’ll have the chest you’ve always wanted ever since gynecomastia reared its ugly head.